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The Films Of Errol Flynn
Libro usado en buenas condiciones, por su antiguedad podria contener señales normales de uso
- GenresHistoryNonfiction
224 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1969
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September 23, 2017
As a young boy I grew up worshiping this man with the greatest desire to emulate his heroics as portrayed on the silver screen. Well, actually it was what I saw on my parents' black and white in our living room. But what kid wouldn't want to be the swashbuckling swordsman, or robbing from the rich to give to the poor, or leading the charge of the Light Brigade into the Valley of Death with the Valiant 600? Besides being the hero, he often had the beautiful Olivia de Havilland on his arm. She was beautiful like a china doll, but that is another story. Yes, Errol Flynn, that Cavalier, was the epitome of what I imagined the perfect English officer and a gentleman should be, and I wanted to be him. He fought for all the right causes and always won, even when he died a heroic death. But what was the man really like?
Alas, like many modern actors and actresses, the private life they lead is often quite different from what they sell us at the theater. They seem to forget that we love the character they portrayed, not what antics they do in their personal life, unless these acts are noble. My hero was a Casanova, and charged with statutory rape of under age girls. He got off, as many do today, through the antics of his lawyers and the fact that his public saw him as the hero who was being framed by villainous women. Of course, I didn't know all this until I read the book.
In spite of his fame, he had a rather hard life, before and after Hollywood found him. Today's Hollywood's famous are hounded by people sticking cameras in their faces. Errol Flynn had women throwing themselves at him while men threw their fists trying to get the better of the perceived hero.
The book covers the films that not only made him famous but helped to shape what another author titled "The Greatest Generation". Unlike my parents' television, everything in his classic movies was portrayed as black and white with no 50 shades of gray in between.
Olivia played in several of my favorite with him; "Captain Blood" in 1935, "The Charge of the Light Brigade" in 1936, "The Adventures of Robin Hood" in 1938, "Dodge City" in 1939, "The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex" in 1939, "Santa Fe Trail" in 1940, and "They Died with Their Boots On" in 1942. Unlike todays starlets, she never had to shed a stich of her clothes nor utter a vulgar word. All she ever did was act the refined lady. If it seems that I am dwelling a bit to much on my childhood crush you have to remember that she was an important balance to him in the stories. In a like fashion, his companions were often the likes of Ronald Regan, Fred MacMurray, and David Niven, while Basil Rathbone was often his arch enemy. They were all the perfect stereotypes.
"The Charge" was, and still is, my favorite. It cost a vast fortune to make. $1,200,000 was a heck of a lot of money back then, yet they made it back. What saddened me was to find out that the cool scenes in the movie resulted in hurting the horses so seriously that many had to be put down. Due to the public outcry of the humane groups (and Errol, I found out later) other methods are now used with little or no danger to animals.
Some people today will be offended for one reason or another with his films. But if you just make some popcorn, and grab a cold sody, and just sit back, you just might find yourself being entertained.
Alas, like many modern actors and actresses, the private life they lead is often quite different from what they sell us at the theater. They seem to forget that we love the character they portrayed, not what antics they do in their personal life, unless these acts are noble. My hero was a Casanova, and charged with statutory rape of under age girls. He got off, as many do today, through the antics of his lawyers and the fact that his public saw him as the hero who was being framed by villainous women. Of course, I didn't know all this until I read the book.
In spite of his fame, he had a rather hard life, before and after Hollywood found him. Today's Hollywood's famous are hounded by people sticking cameras in their faces. Errol Flynn had women throwing themselves at him while men threw their fists trying to get the better of the perceived hero.
The book covers the films that not only made him famous but helped to shape what another author titled "The Greatest Generation". Unlike my parents' television, everything in his classic movies was portrayed as black and white with no 50 shades of gray in between.
Olivia played in several of my favorite with him; "Captain Blood" in 1935, "The Charge of the Light Brigade" in 1936, "The Adventures of Robin Hood" in 1938, "Dodge City" in 1939, "The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex" in 1939, "Santa Fe Trail" in 1940, and "They Died with Their Boots On" in 1942. Unlike todays starlets, she never had to shed a stich of her clothes nor utter a vulgar word. All she ever did was act the refined lady. If it seems that I am dwelling a bit to much on my childhood crush you have to remember that she was an important balance to him in the stories. In a like fashion, his companions were often the likes of Ronald Regan, Fred MacMurray, and David Niven, while Basil Rathbone was often his arch enemy. They were all the perfect stereotypes.
"The Charge" was, and still is, my favorite. It cost a vast fortune to make. $1,200,000 was a heck of a lot of money back then, yet they made it back. What saddened me was to find out that the cool scenes in the movie resulted in hurting the horses so seriously that many had to be put down. Due to the public outcry of the humane groups (and Errol, I found out later) other methods are now used with little or no danger to animals.
Some people today will be offended for one reason or another with his films. But if you just make some popcorn, and grab a cold sody, and just sit back, you just might find yourself being entertained.
Displaying 1 of 1 review